Living A Fairy Tale
by writetherest
Summary: The town of Storybrooke, like its name suggests, is filled with people who can tell some amazing bedtime stories. / Swan Queen pairing


**Author's Note:** Don't own anything except for Eva, she's mine. Unbetaed, so all mistakes are mine.

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><p>The town of Storybrooke, like its name suggests, is filled with people who can tell some amazing bedtime stories.<p>

There's Ruby, who can tell the story of the sheltered young girl who had her eyes opened to the world at the hands of a wolf when she stepped off the straight and narrow path she'd been traveling on.

And there's Archie, who can tell the story of a little boy who only wanted to be free, and who grew up to be the conscious for those who truly needed it and managed to find friendship along the way.

David can tell the story of a young man, raised a peasant but with the heart of a prince, who left his family behind in order to protect them. He can tell of the mistakes made along the way that eventually led to a chance encounter with a princess who turned his life upside down. He can tell of loss and forgetting, but always finding his way back because when you have true love, it's for all eternity.

Mary Margaret can weave her own story of true love. Of a princess who made a mistake that destroyed someone else's happiness, but led her to finding her own. She can talk about the loss of a father and a life on the run. She'll say that princesses don't always need rescuing, that sometimes they can do the rescuing themselves. She'll talk about true love over coming any curse, even a dark one that separated her from her husband and child for twenty eight years. She'll talk about pain and mistrust, but eventual forgiveness, joy, and love. Always love.

Emma can tell the story of a lost little princess, who spent twenty eight years thinking she was unloved and unwanted. She can explain how the little princess grew up to be not a royal queen, but a White Knight. She can tell how a little boy and a tiny town saved her before she managed to save them. And she, too, can tell of true love that saved all of them. Of a beautiful, slightly broken Queen that she pulled out of the fire who managed to steal her heart. She can tell of the battle she fought to win her heart and then the even harder battle to keep it. She can tell about finally staying in one place, standing her ground, and destroying the curse, but not the woman who enacted the curse. She can tell of finally finding her place in the world, her family, the love of her life, and of feeling at peace for the first time.

Regina can tell the story of a woman whose happiness was stolen and trust betrayed. She can tell how the woman allowed the darkness to take her over, and who chose revenge over happiness. She can tell of a dark curse that was supposed to give the woman her happy ending, and of the horrible things she did to try to achieve it. She can tell of a town and a child that were supposed to fill the void in her heart and soul, but never entirely managed to do so. And she can tell of how the curse was broken by true love, the thing she was convinced no longer existed. She can tell of the White Knight, who forced her way into her life and her heart and wouldn't give up, even in the face of all the darkness in her heart. She can tell of the redemption that finally came, of the forgiveness afforded and the mistakes forgotten, left to another time and place. She can tell of a void filled and finally getting her happily ever after.

Henry can even tell his own story. The story of a brave, if misguided little boy, who set out to break a dark curse and almost broke his mother's heart in the process. He can talk about the boy's two mothers – his birth mother who gave him up to give him his best chance and his adoptive mother who chose him and loved him when she couldn't love anyone else. He can tell of the mistakes the boy made, of the way he hurt those he loved and who loved him because he couldn't see past the words on a page. He can tell of finally understanding that there is more than one side to every story. He can tell of the White Knight and the Queen who fought first a battle against each other and then a battle together, and whose love finally overcame the darkest of curses. He can tell of a family and a sense of belonging that finally filled his heart, as well as the hearts of his mothers. He can tell of fairy tales coming true and happily ever afters actually happening.

And then there's Eva, who can tell the story of the littlest princess, the one that came after the curse. The little girl that had the dark eyes, hair, and fire of one of her mother's and the spunk, determination, and pureness of the other. The little girl that adored her older brother and who was spoiled by her grandparents, even if they looked far too young to actually be her grandparents. She can tell of family and fights and laughter and love and all the things that make up the meaning of her name – life.

And she can tell of a town filled with people who, while amazing storytellers, go to bed every night without a story. Because who needs stories at bedtime when you're already living a fairy tale?


End file.
